1. Technical Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to cellular telephone networks and, in particular, to a system, device, and method for the selective acceptance and rejection of point-to-point short messages.
2. Description of the Related Art
The evolution of wireless communication over the past century, since Guglielmo Marconi's 1897 demonstration of radio's ability to provide continuous contact with ships sailing the English Channel, has been remarkable. Since Marconi's discovery, new wireline and wireless communication methods, services and standards have been adopted by people throughout the world. This evolution has been accelerating, particularly over the last ten years, during which the mobile radio communications industry has grown by orders of magnitude, fueled by numerous technological advances that have made portable radio equipment smaller, cheaper and more reliable. The exponential growth of mobile telephony will continue to rise in the coming decades as well, as this wireless network interacts with and eventually overtakes the existing wireline networks.
In order to promote compatibility of the equipment and operations of various Public Land Mobile Networks (PLMN), standards have been developed and are currently being implemented. One such standard is the Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM).
With the introduction of GSM digital-based telecommunications systems, a number of advanced non-speech services are further provided to mobile subscribers. One such service includes a point-to-point Short Message Service (SMS). Using an SMS message, a mobile subscriber is able to communicate text messages with another Mobile Station (MS) or an SMS terminal without establishing a circuit connection. A first mobile subscriber simply types the desired text message, indicates the directory number associated with the destination mobile subscriber, and transmits the SMS message encapsulating the desired text message.
One shortcoming of existing SMS implementations, however, is the lack of any ability to selectively block delivery of point-to-point SMS messages directed at a particular MS. In the case of circuit-connection cellular communication, a subscriber can specify that calls from certain parties not be accepted, a utility that saves both time and money. No analogous utility, however, is currently available for use in blocking unwanted SMS messages. In fact, the only current solution is for the subscriber to personally receive and screen all messages to select those that are actually desired. Accordingly, there is a need for a screening mechanism so that a subscriber can specify from which senders SMS messages will be accepted or rejected.